Learning to Believe Again
by keelykelly
Summary: What would happen if kids stopped believing in the magic of Barbie's stories? What if Barbie stopped believing too? What if the world of Barbie's imagination started to fade? What if Corinne suddenly got transported into the real world, but didn't know why? Would she be able to discover the truth and save her world on time? While trying to figure out modern convience. I own no one!
1. Fading

Corinne tossed her sword into a rack and sighed. Long day.

She looked at her three friends waiting by the door "I'm coming. I promise."

Viveca smirked "We're used to waiting." she flipped her chocolate brown hair behind her shoulder.

Renee nodded "Yep. We're used to it. Now let's go!"

As they left the secret passageways, Corinne felt a strange sensation come over her. On instinct, she turned around and pushed on the brick that was the lever to the sliding wall. It didn't budge.

"That's weird." she muttered as she pushed on it harder. It still didn't move.

"Now what are you doing Corinne?" Aramina asked "Aren't you coming?"

"The wall won't open." Corinne said.

Renee walked back to the wall and tried to push in the brick. But as before, it wouldn't move "That is like a 9.7 on a weirdness scale."

Corinne nodded "What happened?"

VIveca shrugged "It's like the passageway just… disappeared."

"Come on!" Aramina called, running down the hall. They ran to all the passageway entrances, but none of them would open.

Corinne stared at the wall in confusion. She'd had some strange things happen in her life, but this was beyond weird.

**Genevieve and Derek **was walking towards the castle garden together, enjoying the sunshine and each other's company.

Genevieve sighed as she looked at the fountain, and pavilion that were surrounded by rose bushes. Her mother had planted this garden, it had been her favorite place while she was alive.

Derek smiled down at her "Beautiful, isn't it?"

She nodded.

Suddenly, the pavilion and fountain started to fade.

"What's happening?" she asked frantically "Why is it all disappearing?"

Derek shook his head "I don't know."

They watched as all the bushes and trees faded into nothing.

"Derek, something isn't right." Genevieve knew that was an obvious statement, but it was the only thing she could think of to say.

**Liana laughed as **she picked a daffodil and put it into her basket.

Alexa grinned "No seriously. No one in the village believes that we actually married those two!"

"Do you blame them?" Liana whispered with a smirk.

Jeremy and Ian were on the other side of the garden, grumbling about having to pick flowers, when they suddenly gasped.

Liana and Alexa looked over at them. There was a whole row of trellises lining the river, now they were all missing.

The two girls placed their hands on their hips "What did you do?" Alexa demanded.

"Nothing!" Ian insisted "They… They just…"

"You knocked then in the river didn't you?" Liana crossed her arms.

"No." Jeremy shook his head calmly "There wasn't a splash."

"True." Liana shrugged, letting her arms drop "So what happened?"

Jeremy shrugged "They just, disappeared."

Alexa snorted "Really? Can you come up with…"

"Alexa!" Ian suddenly called pointing behind them "Look!"

The girls spun around, their mouths falling open as they watched their entire garden disappear. Then their house slowly faded.

"I…I don't understand." Liana whispered as the boys walked up to them "What happened?"

**Elina laughed as **she flew around the Crystal Cove talking to her mermaid friend, Nori.

"So then we preformed the flight of spring and saved the bud!"

Nori shook her head "You never cease to amaze me." She chuckled "So, have you heard from Linden?"

"What!?" Elina exclaimed "Why on earth…?"

Nori cut her off "He was mentioned like, every other sentence."

Elina blushed "Oops."

Nalu, the merprince suddenly splashed through the surface "Nori!" he called "Something's going on in Mermaidia!"

"What?" Nori and Elina asked in unison.

"I don't know." Nalu answered "But it's bad. The coral has started disappearing, and some of the merpeople are missing!"

"That's awful!" Elina looked towards the magic meadow "I hope everything's okay at home."

'You go see." Nori instructed "I'm going to go back to Mermaidia."

Elina nodded then flew back as fast as she could. She was met halfway by Dandelion, her best friend "Elina!" she called frantically "The flowers are dying!"

"What!?" Elina gasped "Peony?"

Dandelion nodded "And now, some of the fairies can't fly!"

"Laverna." Elina said with a frown "How does she keep coming back?"

Dandelion groaned "I don't think so Elina. The fairies can't fly because their wings are disappearing!"

Elina's eyes grew wide "What is happening?"

**Corinne sat down **on her bed and sighed "Could this day get any weirder?"

Renee huffed "You ain't kidding! Who knew that a whole kingdom of buildings could disappear?"

"And some of the people." Viveca added.

"This is tragic!" Aramina sighed, falling back on her bed.

"We need to get some sleep." Corinne said, kicking her boots off "And hope that tomorrow is better." Her friends were sleeping comfortably by time she was finally able to doze off. As soon as her eyes closed, a strange pink mist flew through the window and surrounded her. She was slowly lifted from her bed, and then she vanished.


	2. Waking up in Malibu

**Corinne's eyes slowly** opened as the sunlight shone straight into her eyes. She held her hand up as a shield. Her back felt stiff and sore. The hard thing she had been sleeping on didn't help. Hard thing?

The sun was hidden by some clouds just then, and Corinne was looking up at large maple leaves.

"Am I in a tree?" She said slowly. She gasped and sat straight up "I'm in a tree!" the branch she was on wasn't very wide, and her sudden movement made her lose her balance. She tried her best to stay on the branch, but with a little squeal, she fell from the branch and hit the ground with a 'thud'!

**Barbie was pulling **some muffins out of the oven when she heard a strange noise. It sounded like someone screamed then hit the ground.

She straightened up and sat the muffins on the counter "Chelsea." She said, turning to the young girl sitting at the kitchen table "What was that?"

The six year old shrugged "I don't know." Then she gasped "Maybe it was a kitten!"

Barbie pulled off her oven mitts and walked towards the kitchen door "I doubt it." She opened the door and saw a blond haired girl slowly standing to her feet, with her back facing towards the house.

Barbie looked at the girl. She was about her height with waist length, slightly curled blond hair and a mid-calf length hot pink dress and hot pink boots.

The girl dusted her dress off, and then she froze. Apparently she realized she was being watched. She slowly turned around.

Barbie gasped at the same time the other girl did. They slowly walked towards each other.

Stacy came running out the door and froze when she saw the two girls "Whoa!" she exclaimed, looking back and forth between the two "You look exactly alike!"

Barbie cocked her head the same time the other girl did "I know you from somewhere." Stacy started to speak, but Barbie cut her off "And it's not my mirror."

The girl pushed some hair behind her ear "I'm Corinne."

Barbie gasped and then backed up "No way."

"What?" Stacy asked curiously "What? Long lost twin? Long lost clone?"

Barbie scratched her head "How did you get here?"

Corinne shrugged, she felt like she could trust this girl "I don't know. On moment I'm asleep in this bed, and the next I'm in that tree… and falling out." She rubbed her sore head "Not fun."

Barbie nodded absently "Please. Come inside."

Corinne follow cautiously into the large pink house.

Stacy followed "Barbie! Who is this? How do you know her?"

Barbie glanced back at Corinne "We met once, long ago."

Corinne's eyebrows furrowed "We did?"

Barbie nodded "Skipper!" she called "Hurry up! You and the others need to leave for school right now!"

Skipper wandered into the kitchen, her eyes glued to her Ipad "Okay."

"Go get Kelly." Barbie told Stacy "And quickly."

"Aren't you going to school?" Chelsea asked.

"No." Barbie answered "Something came up and I can't go."

"Then who's going to drive us?" Skipper asked, eyeing the keys hopefully.

"Definitely not you." Barbie chuckled "The car has autodrive. It'll take you and bring you back."

As soon as Stacy returned with Kelly, Barbie pushed them out the door "Have fun!"

Corinne chuckled "Quite a group. Four blonds and one brown?"

Barbie shrugged "I haven't figured out where Skipper got her brown hair, but…" she took Corinne into the living room "Please, make yourself comfortable."

Corinne sat down in a recliner "This seat has feathers in it!"

Barbie nodded "Corinne, let me explain something to you. You aren't in Paris anymore. You're in Malibu, and way ahead of your time."

Corinne looked at her confused "What do you mean? How do you know me?"

"We met a long time ago, I guess you could say." Barbie answered "It's a long story."

"Well, I've got all day." Corinne answered mentally twirling some hair around her finger.

Barbie walked over to a bookshelf and pulled a large pink book off of it and handed it to the other girl "This might actually explain it easier."

Corinne took the book and opened it "The Nutcracker?"

"Yes." Barbie sat down beside her "That was the first story I ever told." She reached out and flipped through the pages "Here, read this one."

Corinne nodded "The three musketeers?" she scanned the page, than gasped "That's my story!"

Barbie smiled "Yes. That's how I knew who you were. I…uh… created you."

Corinne thought for a second "So… am I real?"

Barbie laughed "Apparently. I guess I didn't realize how real I made me stories become."

Corinne flipped through it and stopped on the page of the accidental balloon ride. Barbie had drawn a picture of Louis in there, and it looked just like him. She sighed "I hope he's okay."

"Why wouldn't he be?" Barbie asked "Nothing else happens there, right?"

Corinne chuckled "Are you kidding? It never stops!"

"Really? But how?"

Corinne flipped to the end of the story and read the last line "With many more adventures to come."

Barbie chuckled "Yes, I guess I did."

Corinne closed the book and handed it back to Barbie "So, did you write what's happening in my home now?"

Barbie shook her head "I haven't made up a story in two years. The last one I did was in the pink shoes… I haven't done anymore."

"Why?"

"People just don't respond to them anymore." Barbie answered, placing the book back on the shelf "But, what is happening in… Paris?"

"Everything's fading." Corinne stood up and walked over to a window "The secret passageways, the buildings. It's all slowly disappearing! Even some of the people."

Barbie's eyebrows raised in confusion "I don't understand how."

"And I don't know how I got here." Corinne turned to face her "There has to be a reason, right?" she smiled slightly "Unless you wrote, 'Someday I will meet Corinne' in one of those stories."

Barbie shook her head "Nope. I don't know why you're here. I didn't even know you were real."

The front door suddenly flew open and two girls came running through the door. One was dark with dark brown hair and the other was pale with brown hair.

"Nikki!" Barbie said in shock "Teresa! What are y'all doing here?"

"You weren't at school. We thought you were sick." Nikki answered.

Barbie chuckled nervously "No. I just got… distracted." She looked back at Corinne. Nikki and Teresa followed her gaze and gasped.

"She looks just like you!" Teresa exclaimed "I mean, same hair, same eyes, same face! Whoa. That's freaky."

Barbie shook her head "Come on in guys. This is Corinne, she's an old friend of mine."

"Barbie, I have known you my whole life and I don't recall you ever mentioning this friend." Nikki said, placing her hands on her hips.

Barbie tittered "Actually I have. Just don't dwell on it."

Corinne stood up nervously "Hi."

Teresa leaned over to Barbie "A little behind on the fashion line, isn't she?"

Barbie rubbed her head. This was going to get difficult.


	3. Modern Convenience Inconvenient

**Viveca ran back **into their room "I can't find her anywhere!"

"Where could she be?" Renee asked, plopping down on her bed "Corinne didn't just get kidnapped. That's impossible!"

Aramina hugged herself. She could fee; tears building up behind her eyes "What can we do?"

Viveca shrugged "How did Louis take it?"

"Hard." Renee answered "He's worried."

Louis walked over to the window of the throne room, completely ignoring what the royal advisor had to say. He sighed as he looked out at the now buildingless kingdom "Corinne. Where are you?"

**Annika and Brietta **were riding their Pegasus's towards the cloud kingdom.

"I'm telling you, it's weird." Annika said "All the lakes have disappeared. So have the trees."

"The cloud queen will know what to do." Brietta said, but she suddenly made her Pegasus stop and gasped "Annika look!"

The cloud kingdom was fading, so were all the clouds.

"No!" Annika looked around frantically "How is this happening? What's happening?"

Briette shook her head "I wish I knew Annika. I wish I knew."

**Corinne sighed as **she picked at the food in front of her.

Barbie's four sisters watched her, never saying a word.

Barbie shifted uncomfortably. This was the most awkward dinner she'd ever had in her life. Even her first date with Ken wasn't this bad.

Corinne finally sat down her fork and looked up "I'm sorry. I can't eat."

"Corinne, you have to." Barbie insisted "You have to keep your strength up."

"At least eat the vegetables." Kelly said "And you can have mine too!"

Corinne dropped her head into her hands "I'm sorry." Then she got up and ran from the room."  
"Corinne! Wait!" Barbie jumped up from her spot at the table "Please!"

Stacy stuck a mouthful of macaroni into her mouth "I think weird is the word I'm looking for."

Barbie found Corinne outside leaning against the side of the house "Are you okay?"

Corinne shrugged "I don't know if anyone is okay." She picked at some invisible lint on her skirt "Why am I here?"

Barbie looked down at her feet then back up "I don't know. Maybe we'll figure it out."

Corinne nodded, but she didn't move.

"I'll just leave you alone." Barbie gave her a small hug then left.

Corinne sank down to the ground "Please everyone. Be alright."

**Viveca, Aramina, Renee **and Louis were discussing the next plan of action for finding the missing girl.

"We have to find her!" Louis said urgently "We just have to!"

Renee nodded "I know Your Highness. We're doing all we can."

The three girls walked over to a table and looked down at a map.

"Okay." Renee said, pointing out areas "We've looked here, here, and here. We'll look…"

She was suddenly cut off as Aramina let out an ear-piercing scream.

"What?" Viveca asked.

"Louis!" Aramina answered "He… He just vanished! I watched! He just faded away!"

"What!?" Viveca and Renee spun around. Louis was nowhere in sight.

"First Corinne. Now Louis." Viveca sighed "We have to do something!"

**Annaliese ran frantically **through the castle "Julian! Where are you?"

Her mother, Genevieve stopped her "We can't find him anywhere."

"Something must have happened." Annaliese sniffled "He wouldn't just disappear!"

Erika came busting through the door "Annaliese!" she called "Dominic's missing! He's not anywhere! And the guards can't find him!"

Annaliese hugged her friend "Julian's missing too!"

"What's happening Annaliese?" Erika asked, breaking down into tears "It's like our world is fading."

**Corinne woke up **the next morning to the small of bacon and eggs. She slowly got up off the floor where she'd been sleeping. The bed had been too soft, so she had decided the floor was more comfortable.

She slowly went down the stairs and to the kitchen, where Barbie was putting some bacon on a plate.

"Good morning." Barbie greeted "How'd you sleep?"

Corinne smiled "Fine."

Barbie's four siblings came running into the room and they all grabbed some bacon.

"Are we going to be Auto-Driven to school again?" Stacy asked "It was awesome seeing everyone stare at the driverless car!"

Barbie laughed "No. I'm going today." She turned to Corinne "Will you be okay here by yourself?"

Corinne nodded "Sure. Wouldn't want you to get into trouble."

Barbie smiled grateful "We'll be back around three fifteen. You can help yourself to anything in the fridge and pantry. Okay?"

Corinne nodded again, and then watched as the five sisters left.

Corinne looked around the kitchen, then picked up a piece of bacon and decided to give herself a tour of the house.

She walked into the living room. It was dark. She remembered Barbie hitting something yesterday to make the candles automatically light. She looked around. What had she hit?

She saw a small panel that had several small round things on it. She walked over it and gently pushed one. To her surprise, the bookshelves turned around. She pushed it again, several times and watched as the book shelves spun until they finally wouldn't move anymore and were stuck halfway turned.

"Oops." Corinne pushed a different button.

Decorations fell out of the roof. As Corinne continued to push that button, different decorations for different occasions appeared.

Corinne laughed as she kept pushing the button. Then she pushed a different button. All the furniture disappearing into the floor. She watched as it came back up, then went down again.

"This is so strange." Corinne went about pushing all the buttons and watching the different things they did.

"I wonder what happens if you push them all." She said as she flattened her hands on all the buttons.

The lights flashed on, the furniture started popping in and out of the floor. Decorations were getting thrown everywhere, dvds were flying around the room. The AC came on full blast… Okay, it was chaos.

Corinne gasped as she back out of the room. She slammed the door shut and heard what sounded like a chair hit the door. She backup up slowly until she hit the wall behind her, accidentally switching on the installed vacuum system. Corinne spun around as the loud noise started. All the rugs were pulled underneath the wall and sent to the washing room. Corinne hit the floor as the rug she was standing on was pulled away.

Corinne jumped back to her feet and frantically pushed a button.

Dusters popped out and started dusting everything, including her. She coughed as she tried to push another button. All the blinds in the house opened and flooded the place with light. Corinne ran down the hall, trying to escape the cleaning utensils. She tripped and accidentally pulled down on a lever. A spray of water went through the house and an alarm went off as the emergency fire assistance was activated.

Corinne ran for the stairs and started to run up, her hand hit a switch that was on the wall, and the stairs turned into a slide. With a yelp, she fell, went sliding down the stairs and out of control across the wet floor. She hit a wall and tried to get back to her feet, hitting the floor polish button in the process. The oily liquid flew everywhere, making it nearly impossible for her to stand up.

She crawled into a nearby room that was full of paint supplies and started to stand up. But the floor polish on the bottom of her boots caused her to fall backwards, hitting a tall plastic shelf that was covered in paint supplies. She watched in horror as the shelf fell over, sending buckets of paint flying to the floor. The paint lids flew off and the colors flew everywhere and covered everything. It covered the wall, the floor, the ceiling, and the girl still trying to get to her feet.

She finally managed to get up and ran from the room.

She ran around the corner and into another room. It was full of fabric and feathers and stuff.

A loud thud on the other side of the wall told her that the paint room was next door and the large wooden shelf had just fallen.

Corinne didn't move, but she watched as a small spool of thread fell from a shelf. It fell and flipped a switch.

A high powered fan came on, blowing feathers everywhere. Corinne ran out of the room. The feathers flew all over the house.

**Barbie was having **lunch with her friends, when a fire truck drove past the school.

"Hey Barbie!" one of the fire fighters called "We got a call from your house!"

Barbie gasped "I'll catch you guys later." She called to her friends as she ran for her car "I hope Corinne's okay!"

She sped to her house as fast as she could. When she got there, she found the firefighters just staring at the house. There was no smoke or anything. But, the windows were covered in paint, there were feathers flying out of the chimney, and there was loud booming on the inside. Then the radio turned on.

Barbie groaned "Uh-oh." She turned to the firefighters "You can leave. I can handle this… I hope."

She ran up to the door and swung it open, just as Corinne came flying out.

Barbie looked down at the girl in shock.

She was sopping wet, covered in paint and feathers, she had confetti in her hair, and her boots looked like they had been put through a shining machine.

Barbie just stared at her, and then she burst out laughing.

Corinne looked up from where she'd landed on the porch. She'd thought she was going to get yelled at. But, Barbie was laughing!

She looked down at her clothes and then she started to laugh.

After the laughter was finally subdued, Barbie opened a panel on the outside wall and pushed a button.

Everything inside stopped moving and it became quiet. Barbie pushed the button again and the house instantly became clean.

Corinne pulled her boots off and stood up "I am so sorry Barbie!"

Barbie waved it off and laughed "Trust me, I did the same thing when I was seven. Right after my parents finished building this house." She walked through the door "Only we didn't have the disaster clean-up button on the outside, so you can imagine how much cleaning I had to do."

Corinne chuckled "In Paris, it's not like this. We still have to start a fire to even light the candles."

Barbie nodded "It's fine. Really. Are you hungry?"

Corinne shook her head "I saw enough flying food to last me a life time."

"But, we still have to sit up all the shelves and furniture." Barbie said "It could take a while."

The two girls laughed as they went to straighten up the house.


	4. A day at school

**Mariposa watched in **horror as the lights of Flutterfield started to fade… and Queen Mirabella was standing right beside her!

"First Carlos, now this." Mirabella muttered "How?"

Meriposa shrugged "I wish I knew."

Then they heard the terrifying sound "Butterfly Fairies! Yum-yum!"

"Oh no! Skezites!" Mariposa cried.

The monsters flew through the kingdom "We're going to eat you!" then, they suddenly vanished!

"Uh…" Mariposa shook her head "Is this good or bad?"

**Odette cried as **she hugged her sister, Marie.

"Where is he?" she said shakily "And why is the Enchanted Forest missing?"

Marie just hugged her "We have to stay strong Odette. Everything will be fine… I hope."

**Tori and Kiera **closed the secret door and looked at each other sadly.

"I don't know what to do anymore." Tori said quietly "First Dad, Aunt Amelia, Merdith and Trevi go missing. Then most of the townspeople disappear, and now the Gardenia!"

Kiera shook her head "And Liams missing."

Tori ran her hand through her hair "We have to get to the bottom of this! I have to find my family!"

**The next morning**, Barbie thought it'd be a better idea to take Corinne to school with her, than leave her in the overly convenient house alone.

Corinne stared in awe at the car "What is that?"

"It's a car." Chelsea answered "It drives really fast!"

Corinne laughed "I guess I'm just used to horses."

"We have a horse!" Chelsea said "Her name is Tawny! What's you horse's name?"

"Alexander." Barbie and Corinne answered in unison.

"Barbie, how did you know that?" Skipper asked.

"Like I said, She's an old friend." Barbie answered, flashing a smile at the musketeer girl.

Corinne chuckled "I guess you could say she knows me better than I know myself."

"Do you have a boyfriend?" Kelly asked.

"Um…" Corinne glanced back at the young girl "I have a friend that's a boy. But we're just friends."

Stacy snorted "That's what they all say."

"Actually, my friends think I like him." Corinne said rolling her eyes.

"You do." Barbie said "Actually, you're in love with him."

"What!?" Corinne exclaimed "I am no…"

"Corinne." Barbie laughed "I would know. Remember?"

Corinne rolled her eyes again "Yeah. I forgot."

Barbie's four siblings looked at each other and shrugged.

They pulled into the school parking lot. They split and headed for their buildings, which were conveniently connected.

"Alright." Barbie said to Corinne as they walked "I should warn you about Raquelle. She's Miss Diva."

"Good Diva, or bad Diva?" Corinne asked.

"Bad." Barbie looked around, glad that the girl in question was nowhere to be seen "Let me put it this way, Viveca would get aggravated with her."

"Ouch." Corinne looked around curiously as students walked past. Most of them sending her a curious look.

"Hey Barbie." A haughty voice said behind them.

Barbie groaned as she turned around "Hi Raquelle."

"Whoa." Raquelle looked back and forth between Barbie and Corinne "Are you two related?"

"You could say that." Barbie crossed her arms "If you'll excuse us, we have things to do."

"Where did you get that dress?" Raquelle pointed to Corinne "From a costume shop?"

Corinne just glared at her until she started squirming "Later Barbie."

Corinne sighed "You're right. Viveca would avoid her."

"Alright." Barbie opened her locker "I'm not sure what to do with you while I'm in class. I'd take you with me, but I have a feeling that would be disastrous."

"I can just sit on that bench." Corinne suggested "You know. Chill."

Barbie nodded "If you don't mind."

"Nope." Corinne sat down "I'll just wait here."

"Alright." Barbie turned to walk away "See you in about an hour." Then she ran down the hall just as a loud bell rang.

Corinne had been sitting quietly for about five minutes when Chelsea came running up to her "Corinne! Can you come meet my friends?"

"Barbie told me to wait here." Corinne said.

"It won't take long." Chelsea begged "Pretty please!"

"Oh. Alright."

Chelsea grabbed her arm and pulled her down the hall.

"Everyone!" Chelsea shouted to her class "This is Corinne! Barbie's look alike."

"Wow." All the kids echoed.

"Where are you from?" One little girl named Emily, asked.

"Paris."

Another girl, Roxanne piped up "What do you do there?"

Before Corinne could answer, one of the boys in the class groaned "Probably something boring."

All the other boys agreed.

"Actually." Corinne said "I'm a musketeer."

All the children immediately turned their attention to her.

"Do you fight?" James, one of the boys asked.

Corinne nodded "I do. All the time."

"What's your weapon?" Chelsea asked.

"The sword." She reached to her side "Actually, I have it on me." She pulled out the shiny golden sword and smiled as the children oohed and awed over it.

"Do you dance?" Kelly asked out of the blue.

"A bit." Corinne answered "But my friend, Aramina, is the pro. I only learned how so I could save the King from danger."

"Wow!" All the kids sat on the floor around her "Tell us the story!"

"Well… I actually have several."

"Is there a romantic one?" Emily asked.

Corinne felt her face going hot "Um… not really."

"Barbie used to tell stories." Chelsea said "But she doesn't anymore."

"Yeah." James said "She quit a long time ago."

"Did y'all like the stories?" Corinne asked.

"Yeah." Emily nodded "But, out parents started thinking they were nonsense. So we pretended not to like them, then she quit telling them. We regret it now."

Corinne looked out a window that was nearby "I hope it's not too late." She whispered.

"**Merliah was standing **on the Malibu beach. What had happened? Everyone and everything was gone! The buildings. The people… her family. She was the only thing left there.

**Tori sat down **on the ground "How did this happen? Why am I the only one left?" she buried her face in her hands and cried "What happened?" she cried over and over. But the only response she got, was her own tears.


	5. Do you believe in magic?

**Barbie walked to **where she had left Corinne, only to find her missing. She's had to go the whole school day without checking on her, because of some unexpected interferences.

"Corinne?" Barbie looked around, bat saw her friend nowhere in sight "Where did she go?"

"If you're looking for you fashion-don't friend," Raquelle said, walking past her "She's in the elementary building."

"Okay. Thanks." Barbie ran down the hall, wondering how Corinne had managed to get there.

When she was close to Chelsea and Kelly's classroom, she heard music. She spotted the teacher leaning on the door jamb looking highly amused.

"What's up?" Barbie asked.

The teacher looked over at her "Your friend, Corinne is it? She's quite the teacher."

Barbie walked over to the room and looked in. She swallowed the laugh that threatened to spill out.

Corinne had all the kids paired up, and they were doing the ceremonial sword dance.

"This is fun." James said.

"Hey Corinne." Emily said "Can we teach you how we dance?"

Corinne shrugged "Sure… I guess."

Barbie clamped her hand over her mouth. This was going to be good.

Chelsea ran over and put a CD into the player. When the song, Perfect Day, started playing, she turned to Corinne.

"Okay, just do what I do."

"Okay." Corinne stepped up beside the girl.

As the song played, Chelsea did the moves that Barbie had taught her, and Corinne, along with all the other kids copied.

By the end of the song, all the kids and Corinne, were dancing in perfect sync. It was quite cute seeing fifteen six and seven year olds, and Corinne dancing in the room. When it was done, all the kids surrounded Corinne cheering and laughing.

"You were awesome!" Kelly squealed.

Corinne laughed "I guess I have Barbie to thank for that."

Barbie smiled as she stepped into the room "It's time to go."

When they returned to Barbie's home, her four siblings went running up the stairs to play and do whatever.

"You know Barbie, I was thinking." Corinne said, following her into the kitchen "I think I know why my world is fading."

"Really?" Barbie pulled some bread out of the bread box "Why?"

"Remember when you told me that people didn't respond to your stories anymore?"

"Yeah."

"Maybe my world is fading because people don't believe in the magic that kept it alive." Corinne absently messed with a piece of blond hair that hung in front of her right ear.

Barbie shrugged "It's possible."

"If you started telling you stories again…"'

"I'm not going to start telling stories again." Barbie interrupted "It does no good."

Corinne sighed. Then a new thought struck her. A really devastating one "Barbie?"

"Yeah?"

"Do… do you believe in the magic of your stories?"

Barbie stared at Corinne for what seemed like a lifetime. Then she sighed "They were just a bunch of goofy stories. Nothing more."

Corinne gasped "But they are so much more than that!" she walked over so she was directly in front of the other blond "Don't you remember? The magic. The mystery! The adventures? Just the courage it takes to stand up and be you? That was the magic of your stories!"

"Corinne." Barbie sighed "There is no magic."

Corinne took a step back. She felt like her breath had been knocked out of her "But…"

"I'm sorry Corinne." Barbie walked from the room "But there is no magic. There never was." Then she ran from the house.

Corinne stood rooted in her spot. Then something strange started happening. She started fading very slowly. She grabbed a pen and a piece of paper that was sitting nearby and quickly scribbled out a note to Barbie. She was in the middle of signing her name when she couldn't hold the pen anymore. She walked over to the glass sliding doors that faced into the backyard, very aware that she was disappearing with every step.

"Good bye, my friend." She whispered. Then she disappeared for good.


	6. Learning to Believe Again

**Several hours passed **before Barbie returned to the house. She hoped she hadn't hurt Corinne's feelings, but, she just couldn't start telling stories again when no one liked them.

"Corinne!" she called as she stepped through the door.

"She's not here." Skipper said "We've been looking for her everywhere."

"What!?" Barbie ran up to Corinne's room "Where could she have gone?"

"I'll take my skateboard and see if she went for a walk." Stacy volunteered.

Barbie nodded "Yeah. Do that. But go left, because I just came from the right."

"Okay!"

The fivesome spent hours looking for the missing girl, but they couldn't find her.

When it was dark and Chelsea and Kelly were complaining about being tired, they stopped.

The younger four went up to bed while Barbie went into the kitchen "Where did she go?" she leaned against the counter "She wouldn't have run away. But then again, she's as stubborn as the summer is long." Then a piece of paper laying on the counter with hasty writing on it caught her attention. She snatched it up and started reading. It said:

Dear Barbie

I will be gone by time you read this.

Like Paris, I'm fading away, and this time I _know _why.

The problem isn't that no one else believes in your stories, it's that you don't.

Don't you see? It wasn't the children that brought us to life, it was the girl that believed in what she told. It was you that believed in us so much that we became real to you and everyone around you.

It doesn't matter what others think, as long as you believe in yourself.

Just remember what you taught me, True courage is pursuing your dreams, even when everyone else says it's impossible. Or Genevieve, Big or small, there's a difference only you can make. Or any of the girls in that book you wrote.

I hadn't faded yet because I am you in a different way. But since you don't believe in yourself, even you have begun fading.

I wish you the best Barbie, I just beg you to please remember everything you once believed in, and why you believed it.

Corin—

The rest of the name was missing.

Barbie laid down the letter and sighed "I did this." She walked into the living room and pulled her book off the shelf. She smiled as she read through the stories, starting with the Nutcracker. The memories of the fun she had making up those stories flooded her mind.

**Little by little,** in Fairytopia, the trees started reappearing. In Paris, the buildings were coming back. All over Barbie's world, the places and people were starting to reappear.

Viveca, Aramina, Renee and Louis reappeared and looked at each other confused.

"That is the weirdest thing that has ever happened to me." Louis said.

The three girls agreed, then watched as the musketeers started to come back.

**Barbie continued to** flip through the pages, reading far into the night

Derek watched as the garden grew.

Aiden and Brietta watched the castle fade into view.

And so it went, but in all these places, one person was missing.

In Fairytopia, it was Elina. In Perthenia, Clara. Appolonia, Rosella. And so forth.

No one knew what to do, their homes were back, but the biggest piece of most of their lives were still missing.

Antonio was standing on the balcony of his castle staring to sky "Where are you Ro? Please come back."

**When Barbie finally **got down to the end of The Pink Shoes, she laughed and closed the book. Then she slowly started singing:

_**There's a star that's right inside you.**_

_**So come on and let it out.**_

_**Find out we are about it just show**_

_**Here I am**_

_**Bein' who I want**_

_**Givin' what I got**_

_**Never a doubt now!**_

_**Here I go**_

_**Burnin' like a spark**_

_**Light up the dark again!**_

Then she kept singing the chorus over and over again, smiling and feeling happier than she had in ages.

**Antonio was still **staring at the sky when he heard a noise behind him. He turned around slowly to see Rosella walking towards him.

"Antonio." Then she ran to him.

"I was starting to think I'd never see you again!" Antonio said as he hugged his wife.

"That will never happen." She whispered "Never."

**Ian had his **arm wrapped around Alexa's shoulders, trying to be supportive to his wife and twin.

Jeremy sighed "She's not coming back Ian."

"Or so you think!" A voice down the road called.

All three people gasped and spun around to see Liana running up the road at full speed.

"Liana!" they all cried and instantly ran for her, but Jeremy outdistanced them, grabbed Liana and spun her around.

"You're home! Finally Home!"

**Daniel closed the **window he had been staring out of. He couldn't help but wonder if Rothbart had escaped and done something to Odette. She'd been missing for too long.

He paid no attention as the doors to the room he was in opened.

"Daniel." A sweet, gentle voice said.

Daniel spun around "Odette!" he ran to her and instantly wrapped her in a hug "I thought Rothbart had come back."

Odette chuckled "Don't worry about that right now." She sighed contentedly "We're together again. That's all that matters."

**Louis, Viveca, Renee, **and Aramina gasped as a figure started to appear between them.

"It's…" Aramina said slowly "It's… Corinne!"

Now, the blond was completely there and smiling broadly "Hey guys!"

"You're back!" The other three girls squealed as they ran to her, suffocating her in a hug.

Corinne smiled at Louis from the center of the mob. When she was finally released, Renee looked at her and placed her hands on her hips "You know something we don't. Spill! Now!"

Corinne just laughed, slowly walking towards Louis "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

Louis smiled at her "I'm glad you're back Corinne." He said, reaching out and taking her hand "It's not the same without you."

Corinne threw her arms around the young king's neck and laughed "I'm glad to be home."

**Several weeks passed** and Barbie had reverted back to her old happy, spunky self. She had started telling stories again. And no matter what anyone said, she didn't quit. And it turned out, the children still loved them!

"I wish I could thank Corinne for her help." She said to herself one day as she walked through her house. Then she got an idea. She ran into the living, took the large pink book from the shelf, grabbed a pen and flipped to end of The Three Musketeers and began writing: After being returned home and everything returning to normal, Corinne received a letter…

"**It's a letter **for you, Corinne.**" **Viveca said, holding the envelope out to her "Or shall I say, Your Highness?"

"Oh stop it." Corinne laughed "I've only been married to Louis for a month." She tore open the envelope and started reading. A smile spread across her face as she did.

_Dear Corinne,_

_I just wanted to say Thank You._

_You helped me see that I needed my stories more than anyone else did._

_I'm sure you've realized that the Magic of the stories is real and alive._

_You helped me learn to believe again, and I could never repay you enough for that._

_Thank you so much Corinne._

_Your friend and self (lol)_

_Barbie._

Corinne smiled "You're welcome Barbie." She whispered as she folded up the letter "I'm just glad that I could help." She placed the piece of paper in her pocket and turned to her friends.

"What was that?" Renee asked.

Corinne shook her head "A friend."

"I wonder how we came back after we disappeared." Aramina said out of the blue.

Corinne patted her pocket "It was just the result of Learning To Believe Again."


	7. Prologue

Several weeks had passed since the incident. Renee, Viveca, and Aramina knew Corinne was keeping a secret. But no matter how many hints they dropped, she wouldn't tell.

One day, VIveca got tired of being kept in the dark. They had just finished training, when Viveca stomped her foot "I wish I knew what happened!"

Corinne laughed "If you wish hard enough, you just might figure out."

Viveca closed her eyes and balled up her fists "I wish I wish I wish I knew what happened!"

A pink mist came flying in the window and surrounded the four musketeers.

"What's happening?" Aramina asked, panic filling her voice.

Corinne just laughed "I guess you'll find out."

A few seconds later, they were standing outside a massive pink house.

"Whoa." Renee said "Where are we?"

Corinne just shrugged "Malibu. Come on. Barbie's at school."

"Who?" the other three girls echoed. But Corinne simply ran down the road, so the others followed.

"**See I'm better **than you." Raquelle said, flipping her hair "I'd like to see you try to beat that song."

Barbie shrugged "I can try." Then she smiled at the musicians "Go ahead. Anything you can come up with."

The musicians shrugged. By now, they were used to the singing challenge by now. So they started.

Barbie thought for a second, then said "I think I'll dedicate this song to a friend of mine that I didn't even know I had, until she came here. Then she helped me get back the old me."

Everyone in the room were already clapping their hands to the beat of the music.

_**I never knew I lost you till I found you  
And I never guessed how close you were to me  
and now I wanna throw my arms around you  
Tell a thousand tales that will astound you  
Everything about you tells me this was meant to be**_

_**Don't you see**_

I'm on your side  
Lets take this ride  
And together we're facing the world  
doing things nobody done before  
And the great divide  
Doesn't seem so wide anymore

Raquelle was already boiling. Barbie had won… again. Everyone was glad that the old Barbie was back. As the band came to the end of their interlude, a voice in the back of the room started singing.

_**I can't recall what life was like without you  
and now it feels as though we've never been apart  
Tell me everytime you think about you  
anything you say I'll never doubt you  
We're meant to be together  
I can feel it in my heart  
Its just the start**_

Barbie smiled as she watched Corinne making her way to the front. Her overly confused friends right behind her._**  
**_Then Barbie joined her in singing._**  
**__**I'm on your side  
Lets take this ride  
And together we're facing the world  
doing things nobody done before  
And the great divide  
Doesn't seem so wide…**_

Barbie -___**And if you be there beside me  
when I falter**__**  
**_Corinne –___**Through whatever comes  
I know we'll take it all in stride-**__**  
**_Both -___**I'm on your side!  
**_

_**Your great divide  
doesn't seem so wide**_

I'm on your side  
Lets take this ride  
And together we're facing the world  
doing things nobody done before  
And the great divide  
Doesn't seem so wide anymore_**.**_

The two blonds laughed as they hugged.

"What are you doing here?" Barbie asked.

Corinne pointed to Viveca "She wished for it."

"I did?" Viveca asked a little uncertain.

"I take it the magic's real." Corinne commented.

Barbie nodded and placed a hand on the other girl's shoulder "Thank you. I can't tell you how much you helped me."

"I just did what needed done." Corinne answered "It was you that saved my world. And probably everyone else's too."

"Um, Corinne." Renee said "Can we _please_ have an explanation."

Barbie shrugged "They do deserve it. But first, let's go to my house." She looked at the other three girls "Aramina. Viveca. Renee. It's nice to see you."

The three musketeers nodded mutely, then followed their friend and the stranger that looked like their friend, out of the school.

When they reached the house, Barbie and Corinne told them the whole story,m then handed them the large pink book.

"You mean…" Viveca said uncertain "I'm not real!?"

"Yes you are." Corinne smiled "We all are."

"So, because Barbie didn't believe in us anymore, we were fading?" Renee asked.

Corinne nodded "Yep. And for some reason, I was transported here to try and help her. If only I had known that before I fell out of the tree."

Barbie chuckled "I can promise you all this. It will never happen again. Ever."

"Good." Viveca sighed with relief "You don't know how freaky it is to disappear."

"So…" Renee said "How are we going to get back?"

"Easy." Barbie said as she stood. She walked over to Corinne and hugged her "Thank you, so much."

Corinne smiled "No. Thank you." She glanced over at her friends "I have something to tell you that isn't in that book."

"What's that?"

"Louis and I are married now."

"What!?" Barbie's eyes widened "Wow. Y'all really do do stuff that I don't know about."

Corinne nodded "Never forget."

"Never." The two girls hugged one last time, before Barbie took the book from Aramina, flipped to the end of the book and wrote:

Corinne and her friends were transported back to Paris safely.

She looked up and watched as the same pink mist that had took them there, surrounded them again, then they disappeared.

Barbie closed the book "I'll be seeing you my friend. I promise."


End file.
